Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace: A Toolkit for Employers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Business Gender Best Transition Health Business Everyday For Case Audit Practices Guidelines Care Culture Realities Allies This publication and accompanying videos were generously made possible by a grant from the Brown-Forman Corporation. ©2016 by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation owns all right, title and interest in and to this publication and all derivative works thereof. Permission for reproduction and redistribution is granted if the publication is (1) reproduced in its entirety and (2) distributed free of charge. The Human Rights Campaign name and the Equality logo are trademarks of the Human Rights Campaign. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation and design incorporating the Equality logo are trademarks of the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace: A Toolkit for Employers 2 Transgender Inclusion 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Business Gender Best Transition Health Business Everyday For in the Workplace Case Audit Practices Guidelines Care Culture Realities Allies A Toolkit for Employers Section 1 5 Transgender Inclusion & the Business Case 9 Trends in Transgender Inclusion: A Rising Tide for Transgender Inclusion 9 Trend Toward Inclusive Workplaces 10 Trend Toward Legal Protections 17 Trend Toward Increasing Visibility and Cultural Awareness Section 2 20 Evaluate Your Workplace: Take the Gender Review 21 Gender Identity and Gender Expression Workplace Review Form Section 3 29 Navigating Gender Inclusion in Gendered Spaces: Best Practices 29 Non-Discrimination Policy 30 Administrative and Record-Keeping 31 Access to Facilities 32 Sample Restroom Policy By clicking on the top left tab on any page in this 33 Responding to Employee Concerns Regarding Restrooms or Locker Rooms toolkit, you will be returned 34 Self-Identification to the contents page. 35 Dress Codes 35 Privacy Section 4 37 Proactive Planning: Gender Transition Guidelines 39 Template for Gender Transition Guidelines Section 5 54 Holistic Inclusion: The Importance of Transgender Inclusive Health Care Coverage 56 Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act: What Employers Need to Know Section 6 60 Addressing Culture: Training & Education 62 Building Robust Training & Education Platforms Section 7 63 Everyday Realities of Transgender Inclusion: Concepts in Practice 64 The Job Fair 66 At the Printer and Around the Office 68 He, She, They? 69 The “T” in your LGBTQ Employee Resource Group 70 Barriers in Benefit Access 72 Everyday Paperwork And Forms 73 Breaking the Binary: Genderqueer in the Workplace 74 Clever Marketing or Anti-Trans Punchline? 76 Frozen Out 78 Key Factors Driving Success of Transgender-Inclusion Efforts Section 8 80 Especially for Allies 81 Assessing your Starting Point 82 Start the Conversation about Transgender Inclusion in your Workplace Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace: A Toolkit for Employers 3 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Business Gender Best Transition Health Business Everyday For Case Audit Practices Guidelines Care Culture Realities Allies Letter from HRC Foundation Senior Vice President Mary Beth Maxwell America’s private sector has led the way on adopting inclusive policies, benefits and practices for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) employees and their families for over a decade. Their commitment to transgender inclusion in the workplace has been striking. Since its inception in 2002, The Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI) has tracked the progress employers have made toward achieving full LGBTQ workplace inclusion. Today, 87 percent of CEI- rated companies provide employment non-discrimination protections based on gender identity to their employees in the U.S. That’s up from only five percent when the CEI was introduced 14 years ago. The 2016 CEI report found that a record-breaking 511 employers – 60 percent of the companies rated in the index – specifically affirm coverage for transgender health care in at least one of their employer-provided plans. This is up from only a handful of companies a few years ago. The progress has been impressive. The policy and benefits progress – as so many businesses know – is just the beginning of the needed work ahead. It is well documented that transgender people experience disproportionately high rates of unemployment and under- employment and it is incumbent upon all of us to collectively translate policy into real opportunities for transgender workers. From supportive Human Resource leaders to transitioning employees, we heard a loud and clear request to create a guide helping make these critical policies real in the day-to-day workplace environment. And it makes sense, after investing so much in creating transgender-inclusive companies, business leaders want to be sure all employees can reap the rewards of their investment. Whether standing on a plant floor, behind a cash register or in a corner office, nearly all of us will spend a significant portion of our lives at work. At the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, this is where we find our center – in the institutions of daily life where LGBTQ people should be able to work, learn, worship and receive healthcare with fairness and dignity. That’s why this guide is so important. I’m proud of the incredible work of the Workplace Equality Program and I am in awe of the courageous transgender workers and allies that you will see in this groundbreaking video series. By sharing their insights and stories, these powerful speakers will help those who use this toolkit build on existing best practices to transform their workplaces into truly inclusive spaces for everyone. It’s a win-win. When all workers have opportunity, including transgender employees, and no talent is left on the bench, our communities are stronger and businesses thrive. Sincerely, Mary Beth Maxwell Senior Vice President for Programs, Research and Training Human Rights Campaign Foundation Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace: A Toolkit for Employers 4 Transgender Inclusion 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Business Gender Best Transition Health Business Everyday For in the Workplace Case Audit Practices Guidelines Care Culture Realities Allies A Toolkit for Employers Section 1 Transgender Inclusion & the Business Case Transgender Inclusion: Making Progress over Time The Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s annual Corporate Equality Index (CEI), a national benchmarking survey and report on policies and benefits for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer employees launched in 2002. The first CEI in 2002 had just 13 businesses earning a perfect rating, but by the recent 2016 report, reflective of the most stringent criteria to date, 407 major employers earned a 100 percent score and the distinction of being a “Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality.” The CEI has raised the profile of the needs of LGBTQ employees and their families with respect to employer-provided health care coverage, and a number of relevant policies and practices for the LGBTQ workforce. Since 2002, the competition among the nation’s largest private sector businesses to be an employer of choice for the LGBTQ community has been tremendous. Several measures in the CEI specifically address concerns of transgender and gender non-conforming employees: a non-discrimination policy with protections based on gender identity, the availability of transgender- inclusive health care coverage, and internal and external initiatives such as inclusive diversity training to address cultural competency around gender identity and expression. Since 2006, the CEI asked about the availability of transgender-inclusive health care coverage, but it wasn’t until the 2012 CEI that it became a requirement to have at least one firm-wide available health care plan that affirmed transition-related care to earn 100. Over the last ten years, the HRC Foundation partnered with hundreds of major businesses taking part in the CEI to lead great change in employer-provided health insurance coverage for transgender people. The 2016 CEI report includes a record-breaking 511 employers – 60 percent of the rated companies – that specifically affirm coverage for transgender health care in at least one of their employer- provided plans. The growing trend is undeniable as forward-thinking employers embrace providing health care coverage that addresses the needs across the full-spectrum of their workforces. From its inception in 2002, the CEI criterion required employers to provide fundamental workplace protections for transgender employees by including gender identity in their non-discrimination policies in order to score 100 on the Index. In the latest CEI report for 2016, 75 percent of all Fortune 500 companies and 93 percent of the 851 CEI-participating businesses Transgender Inclusion in the Workplace: A Toolkit for Employers 5 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Business Gender Best Transition Health Business Everyday For Transgender Inclusion Case Audit Practices Guidelines Care Culture Realities Allies & the Business Case l Total Number of CEI Participants l Percentage with Transgender-Inclusive Health Care Benefits 100 60% 75 50 33% 25 8% 0 2009 2012 2016 584 636 851 include these fundamental protections in their non-discrimination policies. Furthermore, more than eight in ten of CEI-rated businesses offer robust diversity and inclusion programs that specifically include training on gender identity. Today, hundreds of employers also equip managers with “gender transition guidelines,” a set of considerations